


Faking It, Fruct Oprit

by Ladibard_Wordsmith28



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Fred Weasley Lives, Snape Lives
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:00:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25431271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ladibard_Wordsmith28/pseuds/Ladibard_Wordsmith28
Summary: In the heat of the moment, Charles Weasley had accepted to act as Hermione Granger's fake lover, simply to help her get rid of Victor Krum. But what he was not prepared was that tail spinning ride this singular witch would force his reluctant heart to take. Ever since his siblings' letters had started mentioning about the magnificent Hermione Granger, Charles Weasley had begun to daydream about her. She had fit well into his secret fantasies. He thought it would pass, but fate had other plans. For him, she was always, "my forbidden fruit" or as the Romanians say it, 'fructul meu interzis". and now that he is asked to be the new DADA professor, he will have to battle hard against his own emotions, to save his honour and his job.  He is a gentleman, he is determined to wait till the witch graduates to make his second move!
Relationships: Gabrielle Delacour/Viktor Krum, Hermione Granger/Charlie Weasley, Luna Lovegood/Draco Malfoy, Neville Longbottom/Ginny Weasley
Comments: 19
Kudos: 33





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the heat of the moment, Charles Weasley had accepted to act as Hermione Granger's fake lover, simply to help her get rid of Victor Krum. But what he was not prepared was that tail spinning ride this singular witch would force his reluctant heart to take. Ever since his siblings' letters had started mentioning about the magnificent Hermione Granger, Charles Weasley had begun to daydream about her. She had fit well into his secret fantasies. He thought it would pass, but fate had other plans. For him, she was always, "my forbidden fruit" or as the Romanians say it, 'fructul meu interzis". and now that he is asked to be the new DADA professor he will have to battle hard against his own emotions, to save his honour and his new job. He is a gentleman, he is determined to wait till the witch graduates to make his move!

**Faking It, Fructul Meu Interzis**

Hermione Granger slammed her hand on her head and groaned holding the crumbled parchment in her other hand, startling the others namely, Ginny and Neville. They had gone down to Hagrid’s Hut to feed Fang, the boarhound, and the other magical creatures. Headmistress McGonagall had sent the giant off to attend (what he described to them as, practically rolling his eyes), “some urgent Hogwarts’s business which you will find out eventually”. Neville and Ginny had joined Hermione who had been there since The Battle to help in taking care of the wounded and assisting the staff and the construction workers to reestablish the castle back to its full glory. The school was going to be open at last, the new session would start from Monday.

The half-giant would not be back until Friday or even Saturday. He had slipped only the following words before clumping his mouth shut and storming out of the gates,” Got ya do a bit of traveling a long way to…”

Neville was rubbing Fang’s belly and Ginny was rooting through the giant’s supplies, looking for anything that was actually edible. An owl had just snooped in delivering a letter with a violet seal over it. Hermione took deep breathes before telling the other two, “It’s from Victor Krum. Apparently, the bullhead doesn’t understand the meaning of the word ‘no’. He strongly believes I am playing hard to get. And he writes,” Hermeeonee, I have accepted the post of the school coach, quitting professional quidditch, because I cannot stay away from you anymore. Hope by diminishing the physical distance between us, we will be able to rekindle our passionate love for each other.”

Neville scrunched his brows and mulled over the idea, then replied huffed,” Don’t worry, he can’t touch you. School rules, no teacher-student relationship or congress allowed, blah blah blah…”

Ginny asked,” And you know that from whom exactly?”

“Professor Sprout wants me to prepare for my apprenticeship, she would officially induct me once I graduate. She is making me memorize the school laws,” he offered, blushing slightly.

“Well, that doesn’t really solve my problem. Even if I am not into quidditch but, Krum gets carried away, if he is constantly denied…” Hermione blanched.

Ginny understood the witch’s plight. Hermione was exceptionally good at academics and fighting off the evil, but she failed miserably at socializing. She tried hard to cheer up her best friend. “Well, mione, if he is crazy, we can ask Gabrielle to take care of it.”

Both Neville and Hermione hissed at that,” Ginny!”, but the redhead shushed their protest mid-way,” Gabrielle genuinely loves the Victor Krum, she has got every printed poster of him. And she is transferring to Hogwarts to finish off her studies. And finally, veela does what a veela is good at.”

Neville had chuckled at his girlfriend’s wicked plan but Hermione grimaced,” Okay, we will ask Gabrielle to take care of Krum, but I can’t skip the celebration ball on Sunday. And Harry and Ron wouldn’t be around. Shacklebolt and Lee Jordan denied their request to leave the Auror Training Academy…”

“And you won’t really wish to go out with anyone since nearly half the magical creatures of Britain would want to dance with a war heroine,” Ginny sympathized. As the girls continued to sulk, Neville tried to change the subject.

“Guess what, Professor Flitwick came to our rescue. With a handful of Ravenclaws, he has some kind of recognizing charm activated near all entrances to the castle. Goldstein declared that only people who are loyal to Hogwarts and its present motto to bring equality and solidarity in the magical society can enter without getting tossed out of the castle. McGonagall personally went around testing the charmed gateways both in animagus and the human form, just to be certain.” Hermione had missed it because it was her turn to stay with Professor Snape. He was still healing and mostly sleeping in the hospital wing. Healers were hopeful that the man would be back to teaching Potions in a month. Until then, professor Flitwick had agreed to take his classes. It wouldn’t be too much work since only a handful of students were coming back. Every other teenager was rather looking forward to taking a year off and staying close to there family.

For the sake of Ginny and Neville, Hermione didn’t say anything more about Krum or her apprehension about how was she going to spend Sunday hiding away from her practically- ex-boyfriend.

That night when her friend had finally fallen asleep, Ginny woke up Gabrielle and shared her plan with the thoroughly willing young veela witch. The French girl smirked at her,” I will make sure Krum’s eyes never wonders back to Hermione.” Three had already shopped for their custom-made ball dress and had made their own masks. After all, it was going to Hogwarts’ first masquerade ball and they were the first to attend it.

* * *

Hagrid had made one last stop at St. Mungo’s, because his co-traveler had insisted upon it. He was late. A hailstorm had made them take refuge in a small inn for a whole day. He was supposed to be back by Friday, but today was Sunday noon. Snape had declined to teach Defence Arts, making Minerva sputter on her pumpkin juice. Instead, he preferred to continue being the Potion master, making only one promise to the confused Headmistress,” I won’t deduct points as mercilessly as I once used to. I intend to stay at Hogwarts because this is the only place that makes me feel at home.” The Gryffindor witch had conceded the lonely man’s argument.

Sitting beside his sleeping brothers’ beds, the man held his weeping mother and soothed her as she cried into his chest. He whispered,” Mum, they will bounce back soon. And then you will once again write long whining letters to me about their newest mind-blowing merchandise.”

“So, I am not supposed to tell others? “

Rolling his eyes, the son whined,” Mum please, just play along, I want to play a harmless prank. Please, just this once. Please.”

“Okay, I am sure your “darling baby sister” would be ecstatic. Harry and she…it didn’t work out. I hope Longbottom is a better choice, not that I blame Harry. He had too much on his shoulders. And then the war, it changed everything.”

Dropping a small kiss over her wrinkled brow, her doting son whispered,” We will get there one day at a time. Now, in case you have forgotten, I have a masquerade ball to attend. I will drop by at the end of the week. Can’t make promises.”

Caressing his cheek fondly, Molly Weasley winked,” And I hope you get to enjoy yourself, find a good witch, my boy living only with dragons and whelps…it’s not healthy…”

“Mum…. not again.”

The man bowed down to drop a soft kiss over each of his twin brothers’ forehead and left without a noise. Molly dabbed her eyes, thinking of old times when the twins were babies fusing in their bassinets when this tall and handsome man was just a boy. “Always protecting his siblings, from near and far,” she muttered to no one particular.

* * *

Shutting the door of the cupboard, Hermione Granger heaved a sigh. She had wandlessly locked it and had placed a strong silencing charm. But her experience at Malfoy Manor had made her magic act up sometimes. Clenching and unclenching her fists, she started massaging her joints. She knew she was suffering from the spasms again. they were just mild ones, but she would wait till Snape is back on his feet to confess about it. She could only trust him, she was sure of it, he might snub her or mock her intelligence, but he would help. He always helped.

_The Great hall was truly morphed into the most beautiful enchanted dance room ever imagined. The students, staff, and even the attending guests had done something or the other to commemorate the place that stood against Evil and defeated it once and for all. She did kiss Ron, with Harry grinning like Mad Hatter standing next to them. But later on, the three had joked about it, laughing hard how awkward it was to kiss someone who slipped in between being an elder sister and a best friend._

_In the end, she didn’t ask anybody to be her date. Rather all the returning classmates of her batch, told her, they would happily dance with her, just to reel up Krum. None of them liked him since the Triwizard tournament. Finnigan surmised,” He seems like the Durmstrang’s very own version of Draco Malfoy, no hard feeling there Malfoy.” Draco Malfoy, the turncoat, had scowled but his eyes were dancing with mirth,” Mention not Finnigan, that sentiment is mutual.” Luna, tucked in his arms had patted his cheek lovingly. They were officially together, after the Battle. Luna had told the girls, “he saw to it, that the other death eaters don’t touch me and leave me alone. He is caring and loving, but then you will have to peel off the snobbish mask, first.”_

She smiled feeling the spasms growing less frequent now. She would have to wait a little longer. She cursed under her breath and muttered in disgust,” Why on earth was he so tall?” True to his words, the Bulgarian was waiting for her by the Great Hall entrance. And thanks to the teeming students, she had managed to duck her head and flee. The revolving stairs had brought her to the second level and she had dashed into the first door that came into view. 

Alas, it was Boy’s Bathroom. And, it was surprising that the detecting spells did not activate to stop her from entering it in the first place! Perhaps it was the castle which thought of saving her just like the old times. she heard the main door of the bathroom open and bang shut and someone walked in. There was no way knowing who it was. Because she shouldn’t be there in the first case! Clumping her mouth shut, she tried not to move or perform any magic and waited with batted breath for the unknown person to leave as soon as possible!

* * *

He was glad that no one took any notice of him. He was not that ordinary to look at. Tall, with adequately board shoulders and his waving hair tied at the nape of his neck with a leather tie, he could command the dragons with just a wave of his hand. Perhaps it was his casual but classy robes thrown over his dirty travelling clothes that passed him off as a guest. He had told Hagrid, he preferred to enjoy the evening like a student, he once was. Just for an evening, he wished to relive his Hogwarts days, reveling like excited kids and celebrating the fall of Voldemort. Because from Monday onwards, he knew his life is going to change.

The jovial half-giant was quite fond of him. He had shooed him off telling him to change get into something fancy and “don’t forget to put this on, pickd it from a Gypsy cart, the mask.” It was all too thrilling to dash over those revolving staircases. He knew the castle would listen to his earnest request, so here he was, standing in an empty boy’s bathroom with just a cupboard. Grinning at his reflection he started to pull at his robes and soiled and smelling travel clothes. Relishing a quick shower, since he had no time to enjoy a proper bath, the celebration would begin any time and he was determined to slip into the Great Hall before the ceremonial trumpets blew.

Hagrid’s choice was as blunt as the man. It was just an ordinary-looking half mask, which definitely won’t do him any favour. Fishing out some of his quills he started transfiguring them and attaching them to the accessory. Satisfying with his handiwork, he donned it and peered at his reflection. The mirror giggled and winked back. Oh! How he missed these mirrors. He winked back in reply.

He had managed to shove in his discarded clothes in his traveling sack when he heard a sneezing sound from behind. Wheeling around, without even giving it any thought, he muttered “alohamora’ blasting the cupboard door open. A young woman in a red and black gown stumbled out. But she had already thrown a stunning spell at him, which his ever-ready shielding charm deftly flicked away.

Her mask was askew allowing Charles Weasley to recognized her immediately. She was the brain of the golden trio and the war heroine. She was Hermione Granger, Ron and Ginny’s best friend. Gryffindor’s resident bookworm- there were many such names the witch had acquired over the last seven years. His siblings’ letters commonly introduced her as “the mother hen who pecked Ron to study hard enough so that he passed his exams”.

Without any preamble, he asked her directly,” Who are you hiding from?” her eyes shot up and she stared at him and then the door warily. He added,” I won’t hurt you. But it looks like you need some help. Until of course, you are waiting for your beau for a quick tumble. But trust me, the ancient rickety cupboard is practically inconvenient or if you are thinking of the bathroom stalls, too wet and filthy.”

Instead of getting at him with a biting retort, Hermione bit her lips and tried to remember whether she had seen someone like him before. He surely looked familiar, yet she couldn’t place him at Hogwarts. He spoke again this time dragging his words slowly to egg a response from her,” and there can be other probable reasons like you had a breakup, but that’s not the case, you are not crying. Or you have no one to go with, or your boyfriend ditched you at the last minute, though I wonder why?”

She watched him intently and decided he would do. He was nearly as tall and as well built as Victor. She needed someone to just drive the point home to the Bulgarian that she was no longer into him, but the man was not taking her rejection seriously.

The stranger was talking again,” Miss, you are truly in a sticky situation, hiding in the boy’s bathroom or all places. I am tempted to report the situation.”

She finally spoke up, finding her confidence back,” And your situation is no different than mine.”

Charlie felt a rare spark of admiration, thinking no doubt, the Malfoys were so worked up with this muggle-born witch. He countered,” Do you know me? have you seen me in the castle before? And yet I am alive and standing here in front of you. Doesn’t that prove I am a friend or rather a guest of Hogwarts?” turning his back at the mirror, he checked his reflection and righting his mask, which did bring out his aqua blue eyes,” yet, if Rita Skeeter finds us together. Blimey, she would lap in this scandalous situation…”

She squared her shoulders and walking up to him, taped his shoulder. Her confident attitude intrigued him, as she firmly replied, tilting her chin up slightly,” Now that you mention it, I am growing to like that idea more and more.” He caught her eyeing the door now and then, and smirked, thinking, _the hummingbird is indeed afraid of someone_ ,” Locked it as soon as I heard you sneeze as loud as a hippogriff.” She narrowed her eyes slightly annoyed, but had the decency to say,” thank you.”

He watched as her eyes dart out him and then she finally asked him directly,” “Will you help me, please? It’s just until I can get my ex off my back.” Finally, now that she had addressed the elephant in the room, he nudged his head.

When he says nothing in reply, she quickly started explaining,” Look I don’t know you, nor do I want to know you, we don’t really need to know each other, because it is a masquerade ball. You are right you are not the enemy, or you would have found yourself hanging upside down at the gates for all to see. Which has not happened in your case? And if I don’t know you then definitely no one else here knows you.”

Merlin! she surely could keep up with Ginny, he said to himself. He chuckled and teased,” do you always babble when you are nervous? Out with it, Miss. Ask away that favor dancing on your lips.”

Without any option left, she mumbled,” “Will you help me, please? It’s just until I can get my ex off my back. Will you be my date for the evening?”

Where was a strange way in which not only her lips pleaded, her honeydew eyes turned glassy, pulling at Charlie’s heartstrings with invisible fingers, making him go weak all of a sudden? He walked close to her and studied her face, taking his time to appreciate this feisty witch he had heard so often about but never had the luxury to meet in person. He dropped his voice again and whispered bringing his fingers close to her face, “May I?”

His eyes are too intense and yet soothing like ocean waves, that she failed to jerk away and mumbled incoherently,” huh?”

An edge of his lips curled up as his fingers sprang in action. He managed to pin back her mask, and stepping aside, bowing his head slightly he whispered huskily,” “...fine. Consider me your fake lover. I expect a fancy dinner too.”

Hermione couldn’t help but chuckle at his playful tone. She threw back with equal mirth,” It’s on the house.” He chuckled and led her out, but not before checking whether the corridor is empty. “I prefer being the nobleman, you knight in shining armor, guarding a young lady’s honor.”

They walked down the corridor, but before this stranger could lead her down the staircase, she pulled at his sleeves urgently. Turning his head his whispered,” What?”

“well, what shall I call you?” she shrugged her shoulders with effect. Charles shook his head and teased,” Here I thought you survived only on the adventure! Well, to ease your racing mind and throbbing heart, call me Amant, after all, I am your _fake_ lover.”

“Well, then it is only wise that you should call me as something equally…”

But her Amant had the answer ready for her,” If you permit, I prefer to call you _fruct oprit.”_ He watched him say those two words, mesmerized by the way her lips puckered and pursed. She scrunched her nose in confusion, and asked,” And what does it mean?”

Pulling her towards the staircase, because the trumpets had started blowing on their own, indicating, Professor Flitwick would soon ask the band to start playing and the celebration will truly start he replied playfully,” where is your sense of mystery? The night is young, I am at your disposition for the entire evening. Ask me again, when all of it is over.”

* * *

Amant in Romanian- lover

Fructul meu interzis in Romanian my Forbidden Fruit.

Fruct orpit in Romanian forbidden fruit.

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: The same as the last chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Only Ginny was aware of her Gryffindor red blazing dress, that began with the darkest of red wine shades around her torso and it tumbled down her frame, breaking into layers of chiffons cascading like licking flames of freshly lit fire. And of course, that elegant half-face Gryffindor red mask, she had designed, because she wanted to look both fetching and unapproachable. The two women eyed each other, especially Ginny who cocked her head when she failed to recognize the stranger leading her friend to the dance floor. But the witch smiled shyly. 

Neville nudged her and whispered,” what’s it, Gin?”

“Well, nothing, nothing at all. Just that Hermione has bagged herself a deliciously looking tall and handsome man, I, for one thing, find it odd?”

“Odd, how so? Which one, where are they?” Neville stood on his toes, trying to look over the heads of many students. He didn’t flinch at her mention of ‘deliciously looking’. He liked her forwardness. The witch was direct and at times functioned without a filter. 

His girlfriend pulled at his sleeves and hissed, “there next to the Egyptian Pharaoh, the witch who is dressed as burning amber and the wizard who looks like a phoenix.”

Neville had worn midnight blue robes with embroidered lapels and his mask mimicked a sly raven, in contrast to his true nature. Ginny was wrapped in shades of green, while her mask fanned around her face, much like a lioness, but with mane!

Her boyfriend reasoned,” Well, if the man is inside the castle, then he is someone among the guest list. But for Hermione’s sake, we would definitely keep our eyes open.”

* * *

From across the dance floor, Minerva McGonagall stood beside Rebus Hagrid.

Scaling her eyes over the several dancing pairs, she sipped into her goblet and asked, “So, where is he? You said you had sent him straight into the castle?”

“Urm, Headmistress, surely I just did that. But the boy wanted to unwind. Did ‘ome last-minute shopping for ‘im. Surely he is somewhere among these kids!”

McGonagall squinted her eyes and watched a couple in contrasting shades of black and red twirling around. The young woman was definitely not a seasoned dancer, but the man was leading her with such finesse that her faults got away generally undetected. She arched her brow when Flitwick squeaked by her other side,” That’s a sly movement, she was nearly tripping on her feet, but look how he lifted her up slightly and saved the dance. They are flowing like water across the dance floor, marvelous, simply exquisite.”

Amant was tall and had firm arms, which guided her over the dance floor, with such ease that Hermione thanks her stars. Her spasms had subsided, but she was still feeling weak. Thankfully, no longer giddy and nauseated. When her left foot had once again accidentally bumped against his left foot, she cursed under her breath, as she lost her balance. But her partner gently gripped her hip and slightly lifted her off the floor and on they went twirling about.

Holding on his shoulders more firmly, she mumbled an apology,” Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

There that corner of the lips curled and he smoothing brushed off her apologies,” it is prudent to apologize for every little mistake you make. You possibly cant know everything. It is acceptable to be best at certain things, fairly good at some other things, and absolutely lack aptitude for a handful of things. To err is human…”

She couldn’t help but complete it for him,” To forgive is divine. I take it you are a muggle…” He chuckled and teased,” And here I was wondering when will those thousand questions begin! As to your question, no I am not a muggle. But I believe I am a human being who was born with a gift of magic. Is that a fair enough answer?”

She bit her lips trying hard not to blush and smile to give him that satisfaction. Instead, she started sliding her hands over his shoulders. He is was muscular...He chuckled again, though he continued to maintain a respective distance between themselves. His palms were large and warm and his touch was... “can you define someone’s touch as firm and polite?”

She gasped realizing she had said that aloud and ducked her head down. His voice floated and caressed the nape of her neck,” Yes, that is a possibility, and my line of work demanded it of me.”

“And may I know what is it, that you do for a living?”

He twirled her once again and smiled briefly,” I believed you are the one good at guesswork. Without my permission, you had managed to feel me up, of course within the respectable boundaries. So let us hear your hypothesis.”

She smirked and replied,” Well, your line of work involved a lot of physical activities. Makes me think, you are into quidditch.”

“Well, you are predictable, Fruct oprit, contrary to the common belief.”

“How so?”

“If I am not wrong, in this colorful populace, there is only one eye soar, a man, beefy and unnaturally toughened, wearing...blimey, who dresses up like a merman in a ball like this?” he sounded genuinely appalled. But was quick to apologize,” Forgive me, I shouldn’t have said that. One can do nothing about how one looks or his environment. He seems to be quite interested in watching you dancing with me. He is the ‘ex’ I presume.”

The woman in his arms rolled her eyes and scrunched her bottom nose. “It’s alright. Just don’t know look too much that way.” Hermione had caught a glimpse of the Victor Krum staring at them and looked away. Amant hummed,” It is only natural for me to take account of my surrounding. Not only does it feel homely and alive, but it is good to feel important again since every other eye is following our dance.”

“Is it possible to forget that we are surrounded by jostling hormonal young adults for some time, I am really enjoying this dance myself.”

“Well, it that case, we can continue to ignore those hovering eyes, but, tell me something, Meu interzis, why on earth is an oaf dressed like a scarecrow, with a forest nymph dangling on his gangly arms staring daggers at me?”

Hermione slapped his chest and hissed,” because that’s what friends do, they look out for each other, and that Forest Nymph is his girlfriend!” Amant abruptly leaned close to her ears, breathing in her sweet scent, he whispered,” physical abuse was not the part of the deal Mue Interzis, but I will let it pass this time,” when she apologized quickly, he clutched his tongue and smirked, dragging his fingers up and down her spine, uttered,” territorial ferine, I like that.”

She couldn’t shrug off the sense of annoyance and thought she should come in defense of her friends. This man was respectful and polite but he had this subtle way to mock others which did not sit well with her. 

“That Olaf is Neville Longbottom. He was the one who killed Nagini, the Gryffindor’s sword appeared in front of him, and if you know anything about Hogwarts…” Charles had interrupted her,” that Gryffindor’s sword is a symbol of bravery and courage. And it only aids a true Gryffindor. Impressive, I did read about it but to think and see the man physically, quite unsettling.”

“Neville is sweet and caring, but he can stand up for his friends even against them if they are making mistakes. He balances Ginny’s wild personality. That Nypmh is Ginerva Weasley. I suppose you are aware of the Weasley family?”

Charles understood she was tried to fish out information and chuckled,” And why should it be obvious that I must know about the Weasleys? Are they so famous?”

Staring at his deep aqua blue eyes, Hermione quietly explained,” You know your way around this castle. You are not surprised by the portraits, neither are you baffled by the moving staircases. You know about professor Flitwick’s charms trumpets. But you are not someone from Hogsmeade Village nor are you a parent, brother, or friend of any student. If you were you would have met them first, or they would have chanced upon you. But I don’t find anybody recognizing you. Headmistress McGonagall and the others are watching us, but they are not really breathing down our necks or dragging you away. You are someone the castle cares about. Hogwarts has turned very pick about its residents after the war. So I believe you are a returning student. I suppose you were into Quidditch but you are young, too young to be someone playing around professor McGonagall’s time?’ 

When Amant made a face, Hermione tried,” Professor Snape’s time?” again he chuckled, so she said another name,” Bill Weasley’s?” but she couldn’t complete, because he was dipping her lower and she saw the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall, filling with bursting fireworks. His face among that grandeur display looked familiar, but she was back on her feet, slightly breathless. He had pulled her up once again.

He felt her sway and nestled her closer to his chest, allowing her to rest for a bit. He had felt those slight tingling of spasms. He had taken a note of that glamour spell covering her arm, but he decided not to pry. Instead, he confessed,” I was into Quidditch, did play for a while during my school days and yes, I still do a lot of flying. Anything else?”

She smiled finding it satisfied to get one thing right,” So you are an ex-student!”

He nodded and said,” and so will you be about a year’s time.”

Trying not to let that sink in, she wondered, “Well, you are not from here. You speak English but with a foreign accent. You have lived abroad for a long while.”

“Indeed, long enough to allow a foreign accent to wriggle its way down my throat.” He noticed her gulp down a couple of times, and then run her tongue over her lips. Cocking his head a bit, he noticed a couple on far left and the drinks table on the far right. He grinned broadly and turned Hermione so that even she could see what made him smile in the first place. “Well, there, history repeats itself, a veela has successfully tangled a full-grown Bulgarian shark around her dainty little finger.”

Hermione hid her face in his chest wondering why it didn’t bother her any longer that she was getting comfortable around a complete stranger. She whispered mischievously,” That was a planned move. That’s Gabrielle by the way, and she is head over heels about Victor.”

“Well, then I guess my job is done…” when he made an effort to pull away, the Gryffindor Witch held on to him desperately. She blushed and bit her lips and tried,” you can’t just leave like that, what about the grand dinner…”

Humming to himself, he watched her quietly, then dropped the act. Grinning ear to ear, he bowed his head and whispered,” I confess I am starving. But you are equally thirsty, so we stop by the drinks table where an ogre,” standing taller, he clenched his jaw, making Hermione follow his line of sight and groan,” where an ogre and a centaur are busy spiking the punch! Merlin! When will they learn!” 

She was about to stomp off, but Amant drew her back into his arms and whispered,” Let’s not make a scene. Don’t worry, those two will not spike anything, because,” allowing his hand to rest on the arch of her hip, quietly released his well-hidden wand and muttered, ”steleus”, ”colloshoo”, and “titillando”. 

Hermione watched in horror as the ogre and the centaur started wriggling on one spot, pulling at their dress, giggling and crying, scratching and panting, screaming for help. She had immediately turned at Amant, who simply rolled his eyes and pointed out,” Look Professor Flitwick is on his way. He will certainly make sure the punch is removed and those two are adequately punished.”

Even if Dean and Seamus were actually dragged away by Hagrid while the Charm Professor with help of the house-elves had managed to remove the offensive bowl and got it replaced, Hermione could help but glare at her dance partner.

He whined like a baby,” Seriously you are planning to howl at me when I am certain those two were pouring copious amount of love potions into that hideous looking concoction. Thanks to me, nine months from now this whole place won’t be crowded with crawling babies and an extremely livid McGonagall bursting, unsuspecting teen fathers’ and mothers’ ears off!” The image he described was too hilarious for her to ignore and she threw her head back, laughing hard.

They twirled a little more. Thankfully the music was still moderately slow. Hermione had grown quiet, too quiet for him to ignore it. He ran his fingers on the small of her back to draw her attention back to him,” We are guessing my profession? So tell me those hypotheses, then we can dance our way towards the buffet table and I won’t apologize for my great appetite.”

“Well, I can’t really think of anything else.”

“So you are giving up?”

“Without further hints, I can’t guess.” her partner made a sound in the back of his throat, but then his stomach growled. He blushed and tried,” I...I don’t, I suppose…” He looked so crestfallen, that Hermione pulled him by his arm and dragged him towards the table. She noticed he had piled his plate up and was too busy eating, leaving her to her own thoughts. Poor boy! He was truly quite hungry. He had decent table manners but he was a fast eater. 

Once their plates vanished, he tried apologizing, but she was having none of it,” I know the feeling. Being hungry, living without food. You must have traveled a lot.”

“Yes, I was in a hurry to reach Hogwarts. And I confess I did have an option to eat, but nothing could keep me away from tasting the delicious steak and pies that House-elves cooked. These were as delicious as I remember them to be. It feels good to be back.” he added with the brief curl of his lips making Hermione feel uncomfortably warm. She shuddered and tried to shake head her to hide it by Charles could tell, she was not feeling well enough.

He ventured,” I think a brief walk will help you ease your muscles.” Her eyes narrowed at that, so he quickly explained,” I can tell you are suffering. And I am trying to understand why you still wanted to come down and enjoy yourself.”

She bit her lips but her eyes continued to stare at him gauging his hidden intentions. At length, she simply got up and gestured him to follow her. She briefly explained,” Don’t try anything funny with me, or else you would regard it.” Charles offered, holding his hands up in surrender,” Friend of Hogwarts, remember!”

On their way out, she couldn’t help but giggle at the sight of Krum mooning over Gabrielle. Seriously how duffed men could turn around veela!

She led him out to the nearest courtyard wishing to be carefree for one evening in her life. She couldn’t remember when was the last time she felt this liberated. Turning her head, she watched him standing still a few paces away from her watching her with equal interest. He had this mysterious way to warm up to anyone who would give him a second glance. He could mix so well in a crowd and become a part of it seamlessly. He was polite and assertive, playful yet there was an underlying firmness to his character that made her feel apprehensive. She pointed out,” you were too fast to catch Dean and Seamus. How did you do that?”

Shifting his weight from one foot to the other Amant inhaled deeply and answered,” what can I say, I have had a lifetime of practice catching pranksters.”

“Yet you are not an auror.”

“And why is that?”

Waving her hand to drive her point home,” I happen to know a couple of them, all of them are too forthcoming, but your responses are controlled and measured. You are quite calm. “

He nodded and politely replied,” I would take that as a rare compliment. My family is known to sport opposite traits.”

“And you were at least a perfect at Hogwarts because you knew exactly how to tackle the situation. You knew who would respond and you threw the least harmful of hexes. No damage was done yet lesson well taught.”

“My family has been serving their perfect duties through every passing generation,” he chortled at his own joke. But the witch shook her head in disbelief. He asked innocently,” what, you were asking for hints and I am giving them to you!”

“Not good enough,” she shuddered once again, this time her arms twitched and she staggered to the next bench and sat down. He was by her knees immediately. Watching her intently he asked urgently,” are they getting more frequent?”

Oh! Merlin! He knew! He knew all this while! She leaned back and asked,” what? What are you talking about?”

“Miss, I can tell the effect of the Cruciatus curse when I see one. Did you consult a healer, do you have a potion with you?”

Bowing her head in shame, she blinked,” I...I am kind of waiting for someone to recover. I think he is the best person to help me out.”

“Yes, of course, Professor Snape can help you, but Madam Poppy can at least give you something to reduce the spasms or control its frequency. Trust me, you would need them, sooner or later! you cant move about such a big castle this way, Granger,” he knew he made a mistake, but he was not going to continue this act if she was really in need of help.

She stilled for a moment and whispered,” When did you realize it was me?”

“Trust me, I didn’t agree to be your date, because of who you are. I agreed because I wanted to relive my school days. Just for one enjoy the forgotten moments of those merry old times,” he said honestly.

when she looked back at him, she was struggling to get rid of her shoes. Heaving a frustrated sigh, he asked,” may I?” when her hands halted at that, he caught hold of her leg one at a time and pulled off the offensive heels. Red angry lines had formed right over her pale skin. 

He hissed angrily,” Why wear something so uncomfortable when you decide to dance for hours.” without glancing up, he whipped out his wand and muttered a healing spell. Hermione watched the tendrils of light blue mist circle around her feet. Soon enough the red lines faded and she felt like she had dipped her feet in warm hot spring water. Letting out a sigh she thanked him politely and added,” All I wanted was to feel alive. Feel normal. Trust me, I have spent hours tucked behind books crying to myself, because, no one would want to be my date….I know I am not pretty enough. And it feeling disgusting when the world is trying to woo me because I am intelligent. I am not just intelligent…” 

she didn’t notice she was crying until his fingers were ghosting over her cheek, rubbing away those treacherous tears. He whispered fondly,” Fools are those who mock your intelligence, meu interzis, fools are those who pursue you knowing you would never go back to them once you have made up your mind. Fools, absolute imbeciles are men who are stone-blind to notice how beautiful you are from inside out. Fructul meu interzis.”

Hermione blushed and parted her lips when his fingers dragged themselves down to trace their edges. Her head was reeling with possibilities and she knew very soon all of it would come to an end. Amant will perhaps vanish in thin air because this wonderful man kneeling on his knees was too good to be true. But she wanted to know and it was getting impossible by the minute. Brushing her lips against his warm thumb, she whispered,” What is the meaning of that?”

He leaned in closer and asked instead,” how would you want this evening to end?”

She tried hard to hide the feeling of remorse, he had been so sweet and caring and honourable, but this was an act and maybe just maybe she would never get to see him again. So she leaned forward inviting him,” with a memorable goodbye kiss, just like those romantic movies.”

He leaned in further, threading his fingers into her voluminous hair, which he had fallen in love with. Closing his eyes, he inhaled briefly to memorize her unique tantalizing scent, which had him anchored by her side throughout the evening. He allowed his fingers to tilt her jaw to one side and rested his lips over his trembling thumb that relished tracing her thoroughly bitten lips. 

Quaking slightly, he whispered,” Fructul meu interzis and Fruct oprit both mean the same thing. My forbidden fruit.” Mindful of her mask, he swiftly removed his thumb and kissed her. Dragging his teeth over her bottom lips, taking his time to feel every inch of that reddened flesh. Drawing her head closer still, cradling it in between his hands, he groaned as she mewed and thrust his tongue, taking away her choice. Underneath those layers of placidness, Charles Weasley was wild as a tempest. And Hermione Jean Granger responded with equal passion. 

When they came up for air, she tried to remove his mask, but he stopped her advances. He firmly stated,” we had a deal to fake it, let’s not ruin it.”

She panted in frustration and hugged him tightly not quite happy with the idea to let go of him. He hugged her back and inhaled deeply, chanting,” frut oprit, fruct oprit...meu, fructul meu interzis.”

She replied sniffing against his chest,” Amant...will I see you again?” both could hear, several footsteps coming their way. He stood up, dragging her along with him. Her eyes were pleading now, but he could n’t stay any longer. Giving her nose a quick kiss, because he just dreamt of doing that for all those years he lay on his empty bed, reading and daydreaming about her, he begged her,” Close your eyes and don’t open them, until you hear your friends call for you. Hermione Jean Granger, it was an honor to spend this enchanting evening with you. I had the most wonderful time of my life. Don’t worry I will be around, not just close enough.”

* * *

A/N: Shall I continue this, flirtatious dance of paramour?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

He watched Hermione cry into his sister’s arms as she, along with the Longbottom boy, took her inside. Tapping the mask he was holding in his hand over his other palm and he smiled, though it comes out as a grimace. At least she enjoyed and he could safely say, so did he!

He could hear the music pumping up and the corridors vibrating with the upbeat tempo. Musing to himself he thought, ah! The night is still young! Why not from tomorrow the homework will start pouring and points will start getting deducted. Bless you, kids, enjoy the night it lasts. Feeling certain enough that he had lost his appetite for socializing any further, he started walking down the corridor in the opposite direction, making sure he was going further away from the witch who had truly managed to make his heart soar. Wandering aimless, he hummed a sweet Romanian folk song, he often heard the natives sing around bonfires during those lonely winter nights. Christmas would knock around the corner, but not all the trainers got the permission to leave. 

It was about unrequited love one of his roommates explained. Mihai would often sing it thinking of an imaginary girl he would wish to get married to one day. Charles on the other hand, teased him endlessly making the man chase him around the dragon fences during those first few years. Those days were tough. He did mind learning the tricks of the train or getting snagged by an irate beast, but honestly speaking he missed his family. He knew he would, therefore Molly Weasley had made all his siblings promise him that they would write to him owls every month. The ickle munchkins had sworn they would, never for once did they miss a month. Even Bill would check on him, but his letters were short and more instructive. 

Trailing his fingers over the armors of those Protectors of Hogwarts, he thanked each one of them for fighting for the light. The portraits waved and grinned at him, some even remembered him. A mother with a crying babe showed him her child and fussed. He whistled the tune once again and soon the kid started snoozing. The castle lit up the corridor for him welcoming him. A stray melody reached his ear and he turned into a new corridor, realizing for the first time, why Severus Snape enjoyed walking about. “Why of course, he found the castle equally fascinating as I do!” A stag from the nearest frame huffed and corrected,” Boy! That man had too much on his mind. Could hardly dare to sleep at times. But thanks to him, and Harry Potter and these countless students, what a battle it was. To think kids, mere children stood and fought shoulder to shoulder with grown-up wizards and wizards. What a battle it was!”

He nodded and suddenly he found the portrait he was looking for. Walking straight up to her grinned and smirked,” fancy seeing you here.”

The fat Lady recognized him immediately, she gushed,” Oh! Oh! Dearie dear! You! Look at you, all grown up, I heard you are into dragons? What are you doing here?”

He chuckled and teased,” Answer my question first!”

She huffed and compiled,” well, the house-elves took me down to do their own bit of cleaning and polishing. The varnish and the protective magic in it will take time to settle down, so here I am, where no one can bother me until of course, you strutted this way,” she looked at him pointedly.

He gave up and said, puffing his chest a bit,” I present to you the next DADA professor of Hogwarts the school …” The portrait let out such a piercing shriek, that Charlie had to bent a bit covering his ears with his hands. 

“OH! Oh! I am sorry! Well, that’s just wonderful, two Gryffindors to bag that cursed position in recent history. Well done boy, well done.”

He warned her,” and I want to surprise Ginny, so you are forbidden to speak about it to anyone.”

“Umm, okay, anyways, tomorrow the session started, I am just excited to watch kids fill up these empty walls once again. Hey! Sweetie, I don’t see that blazing smile of yours reaching up to your eyes?,” she winked playfully and added,” poor boy, left a sweetheart back in Romania?”

He shook his head and studied his dragon hide boots, then looked up, trying to hide his emotions, he mumbled,” left a friend back in Romania, whom I am missing right now. And met the woman of my dreams tonight, but I cannot have her.”

“Awww, now, don’t sulk, you Weasleys don’t look good sulking like that. You are the life of this castle. Not a week went by without a Weasley making it up the rumor mill. Now, why don’t you just shake yourself up a bit, ay? Dumbledore has asked the portraits to mention it to you, that Minerva McGonagall, the Headmistress would like to meet you after the party is over. And here is a bit on the bonus inside news, Severus Snape will actually attend this meeting. He is complaining he had ‘enough of the horizontal posture’, though I wonder what did he mean by that! Now off you go! Breathe in some fresh air. Getting into something more presentable. You got an interview of sorts to appear for. By the way, Prince Charming, you look dashing in that custom of yours!”

Charles rolled his eyes and huffed,” Seriously, only you would find this tweed suit dashing.”

The portrait tsked and chastised,” shush! Don’t underestimate yourself. You are handsome and that suit looks good on you. Much like young and handsome Professor Dumbledore?Mmmhhmmm.”

When the young man gagged, she teased,” or Dumbledork, would you like that name?”

Raising his hands in surrender, he gave up,” Spare me! Madam, I prefer being just Charles.”

Rolling her eyes, she smacked her lips and barked,” Well then just Charles, off you go! And Do exactly as I said! You don’t wish to face Snape with that sappy look on your face.”

“Nope, definitely not,” he blew a kiss at her and grinned when she blushed. But before walking away he thanked her,” See you around Fat Lady. And dearie, it saddens me to end our tryst with such painful notes.” The fat lady giggled and blushed when he winked and added a bit more seriously,” now, love, we don’t wish the students to catch us flirting like this in broad daylight, now do we?”

“Stop being such a tease, boy, and get going. I would rather prefer calling you as Professor Weasley henceforth, ah, now doesn’t that sound sinful!” she poked her tongue at him when he bowed dramatically and left her to herself.

* * *

Finally finding himself under the open sky up above the Astronomy Tower, Charles dropped his pretense and sighed. He blinked several times until he couldn’t keep it bottled down. He laughed as he cried and chuckled at his silly outburst. Wiping her eyes at his sleeves he let everything come crashing down. He fears his restlessness and his urge to be with his family during the darkest of times, but Signor Andrei, the in charge of the reserve, would not let him go.

He was proud and frightened for Ron. He was proud of the twins, opening a business! He had fought with his mother arguing those two were ahead of their times mum, just give them a chance. I will later on make them take up such working diplomas with the ministry. Dad getting attacked and Bill’s marriage getting gatecrashed by a band of Deatheaters. He unclenched and unclenched his fists, remembering the feeling of helplessness when his Mum had floo called and broke down saying,” the Burrow, they burnt the Burrow to the ground!” 

But now they were back to square one. “Hogwarts was home to every Weasley,” his father used to say when he tinkered in the shed surrounded by those remarkable muggles machines, “don’t you ever forget it. No matter where you go, no matter if we, that is Your Mum and I are not around, you can still go back to Hogwarts. It is a safe haven. Always has been and always will be time till the end of time. Till its residents chose to stand by Albus Dumbledore’s code of ethics.”

Brushing his palms over the ledge, he mused fondly,” Trust me, mate, it feels great to be bad. Now, all I need to do is calm this racing heart a bit. Going to be tough, I tell you, pretty tough.”He looked up at the stars and watched those twinkling studs of diamond wink back at him and chuckled. “She is so much more than I could ever imagine.”

His siblings’ letters had introduced him to Hermione Granger, the surest of muggle-born witches to attend Hogwarts after a long time. Fred and George were rolling all over the parchment,” can you believe it, she stole from Snape and set fire to his robes.” Ron was the one always complaining,” she does not read books, she eats them, well actually, it is her brain under all those mass of wild crackling hair that eats information. Blimey! Charlie, she is scary, brilliant, earns the house most of the points from our year but, you won’t wish to be in her bad books. Who on earth apart from Percy of course, reading double my palm size fat tomes and calls it light reading.”

Percy’s letter was rather a huge surprise. That consummate upstart had dropped a rather piece of the appreciation,” she is one of the few in school who actually takes the trouble of finishing up her homework ahead of time. She takes interest in almost everything around. Finally, there is someone to hold a sensible conversation with apart from the Ravenclaws.”

Once Bill informed him how fascinated she was to know about the goblins. Then Ginny’s letters were also talking about the witch and of course several other wizards, the name Harry Potter cropping up mostly. He thought back, while Mihai whistled that refrain of his favorite love song, while Ginny gushed about Harry Potter, deep within the recess of his quiet heart an image of a no-nonsense witch started forming. First, it was mostly out of the sense of protectiveness, he felt for all of his siblings. He hated it when he read about the Malfoy brat picking on her and admired the way she gave it back. Surely getting beaten by a muggle-born witch every year, was not something the pureblood silver boy ever dreamt of. 

He could never put his finger on that moment when he actually started fantasizing about her. Saying her name again and again in his mind. It excited him and bothered him to fall for someone so young. Still, no one knew of it, and it was for the best no one did! She was perhaps one of the reasons he could never go on dates, but then he was allowed to leave the reserve, was he! Thanking his stars once again, thanking the night, thanking Hermione Granger for being the one to welcome him back to Hogwarts is such a surprising way, Charles Weasley stepped back into the castle.

* * *

Changing into acceptable yet simple robes, he found his way down. The students were returning back to their dorms. A few of them looked at him curiously and a handful of girls giggled and whispered as he crossed them, but no one asked a word. There was no more music drifting out of the Great Hall, the party was over. 

He met Argus Filch near the mouth of the corridor that would lead him to the Headmistress’s gargoyle guarded head office. The squib squinted at him as Mrs. Norris licked and pawed his boots,” Ay! A Weasley, most certainly a Weasley, but which one?” When Charles grinned at him the man’s eyes shot up,” Oye! Mr. Charles Weasley, Hagrid’s been all over the place about you. Dragons were it? You tamed those wild beasts! Well, you were right to forewarn me about those two rascals, those twins. Ronald was a sweetling compared to Fred and George.”

“I did think it was best to warn you. At least you would know what was going to hit you. I wasn’t so worried about Percy, but Fred and George had managed to earn a spot for themselves at St.Mungos, before setting their foot in Hogwarts. I hope Mrs. Norris here liked that cat treats.” The squid smiled at that and patted the young man’s shoulder,” that was so thoughtful of you, boy. Honestly, it is rare that a Gryffindor has earned undivided respect from all the houses during his time in Hogwarts.” Suddenly he exclaimed,” Oh! Forgive me, if I am holding you back, they are waiting for you in there,” pointing at the Gargoyle statue.

Charles nodded good-naturedly when the caretaker informed,” they had been looking for you throughout the night. Hagrid kept saying that you were somewhere around, busy, enjoying yourself, feasting on, and goofing around. So, did you really do all that, or the half-giant was just spinning a tale?”

The young man grinned broadly and nodded,” I have a nice time, one of the best nights in my life.”

“Very well, now, this year’s password is ‘novis initiis’. You will need it to go up. Good night, Mr. Weasley, for tonight the elves have arranged the guest rooms for both Mr. Krum and you. But tomorrow you can shift to your official quarters. There will be a handful of students attending this year, so we won’t have too much to do half the time, other than of course sniffing out the troublemakers!” The caretaker turned and walked down the corridor. 

Charles stood under the Gargoyle statue and thought, how fitting novis initiis, new beginning, well at least he won't have to remember names of confectionaries! When he opened his mouth, the gargoyle shifted and Victor Krum came down the stairs. The two men stood face to face for a few seconds. Until Krum held up his hand and asked,” You must be Mr. Charles Weasley. Your reputation runs ahead of you.”

Taking his hand, giving it a firm shake, Charles politely answered,” Forgive me Sir, but I find myself honored to stand in front of a celebrated Quidditch Player.”

“Make that ex, Mr. Weasley. I am here to teach the game from now on. The broken society needs the sport to find relief in.”

“Rightly put, Mr. Krum, that feeling is mutual.”

The Bulgarian bowed his head and left, while Charles shook his own and stood on the first step, thinking,” Here we go!”

* * *

Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape eyed the door once, Victor Krum left, heaving a long sigh. The headmistress shared her doubt with the dour man. Severus snape looked pale, but he had managed to hide those layers of bandages under his cravat well enough. That man was as stubborn as a mule! He had the gale to question her decision arguing if they were to interrogate the new intended staff members they should do it jointly. 

But he was right all along. The Bulgarian might give them all a tough time. He had spent most of the evening dancing with every witch who was too willing, thinking she was Granger, until of course, Miss Grabielle Declour had charmed her way in. Which again was unexpectable. It was against the school ethics. The governor would have a field day with the press getting wind of his decadent ways. Sprout tutted,” Poor man, pining for the love of a woman who insisted to move on. He would need time to heal surely,” Trelawny had managed blurp out,” his stars are telling me, he is in for more heartache.” 

“You know you would have to keep looking for a substitute, I don’t think he would last the year. Thank goodness, Miss Granger dislikes Quidditch, or else we would have real trouble waiting ahead of us,” Severus observed.

“Sadly, I will have to agree to that. I only accepted his request, because the ministry was looking forward to knitting several magical countries around the continent together and forming a coalition. In that way, they feel they can carb the rise of yet another Dark Lord.”

The potion master muttered derisively,” Unbelievable, still refusing to see that they need to strengthen their foundation, before shaking hands with the head of other countries, hogwash.”

“For the same reason, I accept your proposal of bringing back Charlie Weasley, though I am failing to understand why he, and not an Auror.”

Severus drawled staring at the door once again,” have patience, Minerva, the man is coming up now. But remember you can grill him about his whereabouts after I have said my piece. “

Surely, Severus, you can bite his head off,” Minerva scoffed.

But Severus smiled at her fondly, making her arch his eyebrows in question,” Mr. Charles Weasley is a mix of all his family members, yet he is someone who will keep surprising you with his endless desire to stand by you, to add to it, that man can read in between the lines much like Miss Granger. Something to keep in mind, Headmistress.”

They both heard a knock at the door and sat straighter as the Headmistress cleared her throat and called out,” Please come in, Mr. Charles Weasley.”

* * *

A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter, because it broke my heart, as I wrote Charlie’s part. (sniffing and wiping tears)


End file.
